{"id":65778,"date":"2020-02-20T19:17:51","date_gmt":"2020-02-20T19:17:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/o-as-in-ossau-iraty\/"},"modified":"2026-03-30T18:58:06","modified_gmt":"2026-03-30T18:58:06","slug":"o-as-in-ossau-iraty","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/o-as-in-ossau-iraty\/","title":{"rendered":"O as in Ossau Iraty"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Ossau iraty is a French cheese made from sheep’s milk in the Basque country. Its appellation, derived from two geographical names including the Pic du Midi d’Ossau in the Pyr\u00e9n\u00e9es-Atlantiques region and the Iraty forest in the Basque country, was protected by the AOC (Appellation d’Origine Contr\u00f4l\u00e9e) in 1980 and the AOP (Appellation d’Origine Prot\u00e9g\u00e9e) in 1996. <\/em> <\/p>\n\n

Why\nthe ossau-iraty appellation?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n

Livestock farming\nhas been a key activity in the Pyrenees from the Neolithic\nup to the present day, when farmers\nbegan making cheese, which they consumed themselves\nbefore selling the surplus. However, as the\ncattle grew, farmers no longer had time to sell the\ncheeses, and concentrated solely on milking the milk. It was\nthat prompted them to turn to cheese ripeners. \n\n<\/p>\n\n

In\n1904, Roquefort-sur-Soulzon processors set up\nin the Pyrenees, boosting farmers’ incomes. But\nin 1970, Roquefort production fell, although it was replaced\nby local production of traditional cheeses. In 1975, the\nPyrenees noted that Roquefort was trying to transform\ncheese into a semi-industrial diversification product, prompting the\nproducers of the Pays Basque and B\u00e9arn to set up a\ndefense syndicate to obtain an AOC and an AOP. \n<\/p>\n\n

The appellation\nOussau Iraty is a combination of geographical names located between\nthe two extremities of the Pays Basque and B\u00e9arn. The French and Spanish Pays Basque\ncontains the Iraty forest, the largest beech forest in Europe\n. At the other end of B\u00e9arn is\nthe Pic du Midi d’Ossau, the highest peak in the Pyrenees\nAtlantiques. In short, while in the beginning, the ossau\niraty<\/em>\nappellation covered 563 communes in the Pyrenees, today there are only 372 communes in\nbecause the syndicat wishes to\nbring the traditional production area closer to the\nmaturing area. \n<\/p>\n\n

How to enjoy ossau-iraty cheese? <\/h2>\n\n

\nossau-iraty cheese is best eaten with walnut bread. When\nyou chew the mixture, you can feel the brittle paste of\nossau-iraty expressing itself with the scent of dried fruit. With this\nbread in your mouth, you’ll quickly discern the body of the\nyoung cheese marrying the maturing of the old pasta. Alternatively, there’s\nwholemeal bread, which leaves no one indifferent when the modest taste\nof cereals is complemented by the acidic note of ewe’s milk.\nFor a perfect match, top it off with\nblack Ixtassou cherry jam. \n<\/p>\n\n

On the\nbeverage side, a red wine from Arbois du Jura is ideal, with its\naromas of dark fruit, spices and leather. If you want more\nfinesse, accompany the cheese with a fruity demi-sec champagne\nto bring out the milk and hazelnut flavors of the cheese. Its\nsmooth, consistent texture will delicately satisfy your palate. \n<\/p>\n\n

Find more interesting facts about Foie Gras and the Basque Country on our Blog<\/a> and tasty recipes in the Recipe<\/a> section of our website!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ossau iraty is a French cheese made from sheep’s milk in the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":65779,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2268],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-65778","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-unclassified"],"yoast_head":"\nO as in Ossau-Iraty: PDO cheese<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Ossau Iraty: Basque cheese made from ewe's milk, perfect with black cherry jam.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/o-as-in-ossau-iraty\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"O as in Ossau Iraty\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Ossau iraty is a French cheese made from sheep's milk in the Basque country. Its appellation, derived from two geographical names including the Pic du\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/o-as-in-ossau-iraty\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Relais Gourmet\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/relaisgourmet\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2020-02-20T19:17:51+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-03-30T18:58:06+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/ossau.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1049\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"729\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Relais Gourmet\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@relaisgourmet64\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@relaisgourmet64\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Relais Gourmet\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\\\/en\\\/o-as-in-ossau-iraty\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\\\/en\\\/o-as-in-ossau-iraty\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Relais Gourmet\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/fee9aa741054268c2e034821e2d97f46\"},\"headline\":\"O as in Ossau Iraty\",\"datePublished\":\"2020-02-20T19:17:51+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-03-30T18:58:06+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\\\/en\\\/o-as-in-ossau-iraty\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":470,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\\\/en\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\\\/en\\\/o-as-in-ossau-iraty\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2024\\\/09\\\/ossau.png\",\"articleSection\":[\"Unclassified\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\\\/en\\\/o-as-in-ossau-iraty\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\\\/en\\\/o-as-in-ossau-iraty\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\\\/en\\\/o-as-in-ossau-iraty\\\/\",\"name\":\"O as in Ossau-Iraty: PDO cheese\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\\\/en\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\\\/en\\\/o-as-in-ossau-iraty\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\\\/en\\\/o-as-in-ossau-iraty\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2024\\\/09\\\/ossau.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2020-02-20T19:17:51+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-03-30T18:58:06+00:00\",\"description\":\"Ossau Iraty: Basque cheese made from ewe's milk, perfect with black cherry jam.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\\\/en\\\/o-as-in-ossau-iraty\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\\\/en\\\/o-as-in-ossau-iraty\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\\\/en\\\/o-as-in-ossau-iraty\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2024\\\/09\\\/ossau.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2024\\\/09\\\/ossau.png\",\"width\":1049,\"height\":729,\"caption\":\"O comme Ossau Iraty\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\\\/en\\\/o-as-in-ossau-iraty\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Startseite\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\\\/en\\\/home\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"O as in Ossau Iraty\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\\\/en\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\\\/en\\\/\",\"name\":\"Relais Gourmet\",\"description\":\"Foie Gras 100% Fran\u00e7ais\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\\\/en\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\\\/en\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\\\/en\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Relais Gourmet\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\\\/en\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/yoast-logo-2-relais-gourmet-.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/yoast-logo-2-relais-gourmet-.png\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":675,\"caption\":\"Relais Gourmet\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/relaisgourmet\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/relaisgourmet64\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.instagram.com\\\/relaisgourmetofficiel\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.pinterest.fr\\\/relaisgourmet\\\/\"],\"email\":\"yaqueche@relaisgourmet.com\",\"telephone\":\"+33 0 5 40 07 07 65\",\"legalName\":\"Relais Gourmet\",\"vatID\":\"FR13482415015\",\"taxID\":\"482415015\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/fee9aa741054268c2e034821e2d97f46\",\"name\":\"Relais Gourmet\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/7d33fb359355faf6cdd998ffcdf84865e1af065d1674331f55b153bece25574c?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/7d33fb359355faf6cdd998ffcdf84865e1af065d1674331f55b153bece25574c?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/7d33fb359355faf6cdd998ffcdf84865e1af065d1674331f55b153bece25574c?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Relais Gourmet\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/relaisgourmet.com\"]}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"O as in Ossau-Iraty: PDO cheese","description":"Ossau Iraty: Basque cheese made from ewe's milk, perfect with black cherry jam.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/o-as-in-ossau-iraty\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"O as in Ossau Iraty","og_description":"Ossau iraty is a French cheese made from sheep's milk in the Basque country. Its appellation, derived from two geographical names including the Pic du","og_url":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/o-as-in-ossau-iraty\/","og_site_name":"Relais Gourmet","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/relaisgourmet\/","article_published_time":"2020-02-20T19:17:51+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-03-30T18:58:06+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1049,"height":729,"url":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/ossau.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"Relais Gourmet","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@relaisgourmet64","twitter_site":"@relaisgourmet64","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Relais Gourmet","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/o-as-in-ossau-iraty\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/o-as-in-ossau-iraty\/"},"author":{"name":"Relais Gourmet","@id":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/fee9aa741054268c2e034821e2d97f46"},"headline":"O as in Ossau Iraty","datePublished":"2020-02-20T19:17:51+00:00","dateModified":"2026-03-30T18:58:06+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/o-as-in-ossau-iraty\/"},"wordCount":470,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/o-as-in-ossau-iraty\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/ossau.png","articleSection":["Unclassified"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/o-as-in-ossau-iraty\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/o-as-in-ossau-iraty\/","url":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/o-as-in-ossau-iraty\/","name":"O as in Ossau-Iraty: PDO cheese","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/o-as-in-ossau-iraty\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/o-as-in-ossau-iraty\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/ossau.png","datePublished":"2020-02-20T19:17:51+00:00","dateModified":"2026-03-30T18:58:06+00:00","description":"Ossau Iraty: Basque cheese made from ewe's milk, perfect with black cherry jam.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/o-as-in-ossau-iraty\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/o-as-in-ossau-iraty\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/o-as-in-ossau-iraty\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/ossau.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/ossau.png","width":1049,"height":729,"caption":"O comme Ossau Iraty"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/o-as-in-ossau-iraty\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Startseite","item":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/home\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"O as in Ossau Iraty"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/#website","url":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/","name":"Relais Gourmet","description":"Foie Gras 100% Fran\u00e7ais","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/#organization","name":"Relais Gourmet","url":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/yoast-logo-2-relais-gourmet-.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/yoast-logo-2-relais-gourmet-.png","width":1200,"height":675,"caption":"Relais Gourmet"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/relaisgourmet\/","https:\/\/x.com\/relaisgourmet64","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/relaisgourmetofficiel","https:\/\/www.pinterest.fr\/relaisgourmet\/"],"email":"yaqueche@relaisgourmet.com","telephone":"+33 0 5 40 07 07 65","legalName":"Relais Gourmet","vatID":"FR13482415015","taxID":"482415015"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/fee9aa741054268c2e034821e2d97f46","name":"Relais Gourmet","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7d33fb359355faf6cdd998ffcdf84865e1af065d1674331f55b153bece25574c?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7d33fb359355faf6cdd998ffcdf84865e1af065d1674331f55b153bece25574c?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7d33fb359355faf6cdd998ffcdf84865e1af065d1674331f55b153bece25574c?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Relais Gourmet"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com"]}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/65778","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=65778"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/65778\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":65780,"href":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/65778\/revisions\/65780"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/65779"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=65778"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=65778"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/relaisgourmet.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=65778"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}